Sound recording



May 24, 1932. ARNOLD 1,859,423

SOUND RECORDING Filed May '7, 1929 II IHI 6 '1 9 I INN/U 2r ATTORNEY Patented May 24, 1932 UNITED srArEsrArE ar emce HAROLD D. ARNOLD, OF MAPLEWOOD, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO BELL TELEPHONE LABORATORIES, INCORPORATED, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW SOUND RECORDING:

Application filed May 7, 1929. Serial No. 361,094.

This invention relates to sound reproduction and particularly to means for introducing into the sound reproduced from a record desirable characteristics which may not be present in the original record of a selection.

In certain types of music it is desirable to have certain echo or reverberation effects which may be produced by reflecting surfaces in the recording room. The amount of reflection to be provided in any particular case, however, is hard to establish and much of the recording is done in rooms in which the echo or reverberation eflects are purposely suppressed by damping.

It is the object of this invention to reproduce a record made in a so-called dead room in such a manner that the necessary echo or reverberation effects will be heard by the listener.

In accordance with the general features of this invention the desired tonal effects are produced by means of a plurality of pick-up devices so located with respect to each other and with respect to the record surface to secure proper time intervals of the successive cooperation of each pick-up device with the same portion of the record surface, each pickup device being associated with an attenuator or amplifier to secure the proper relative loudness.

In the drawing which illustrates schematically the reproducingarrangement, 5 is a phonograph turntable driven by a motor 6 and carrying a record 7 upon which is engraved the selection to be reproduced. Cooperating with the record 7 are a plurality of reproducers 8, 9 and 10 of a well-known form such as disclosed, for example, in the H. C. Harrison Patent No. 1,628,666 issued May 17 1927. The reproducers 8, 9 and 10 are connected respectively with adjustable amplifiers or attenuators 11, 12 and 13 the outputs of which are fed to a sound amplifier 15 or the output of the amplifiers may be fed to a recording apparatus for producing a record effects.

By so locating the pick-up devices 8, 9 and 10 with respect to each other on the record that they pick up the same waves succeeding intervals and properly controlling the volume of the output of each pick-up device by means of its associated amplifier or attenuator the same effects may be pro duced as by a single reproducer picking up from a record from a selection played in a room with echo and reverberation efiects.

The amplifiers or attenuators 11, 12 and 13 are adjustable and may be associated with a single sound amplifying device or with a plurality of these devices in parallel as is common in present loud speaker installations.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in connection with one form of sound reproduction it is obvious that the scheme is equally applicable to any of the forms of recording and reproduction known and practiced in the art.

What is claimed is:

l. The method of producing echo or reverberation effects in the reproduction of a record made from a selection produced in a dead room which consists in reproducing in close succession the engravings of the rec'-.

0rd and controlling the loudness of each successive reproduction.

2. The combination with a sound record made from a selection produced in a dead room of a plurality of pick-up devices cooperating with said record in predetermined spaced relation, adjustable controlling appa ratus associated with each of said pick-up devices and sound amplifying means associated with said controlling apparatus. 7

3. The method of making a record having the attributes of one made in a live room from a record made in a dead room'which consists in reproducing the latter record a plurallty of times in close succession, con-1 surface having the desired at closely trolling the loudness of each successive vreproduction, combining the reproductions and making therefrom a second record.

4. The'combination with a sound record 5 made from a selection produced in a dead room of a plurality of pick-up devices cooperating with the record in predetermined spaced relation, adjustable controlling apparatus associated With each of the pick-up devices, sound amplifying means associate with the controlling apparatus and means associated with the amplifying means for making a single record of the combined output of the pick-up devices.

In Witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe 7 my name this 6th dayof May, 1929.

HAROLD D. ARNOLD. 

